Variety 7/13/2023

Forget summer light: These past few weeks have been extremely challenging for the entertainment industry. At this writing, we still don’t know if Hollywood’s performers union will join the WGA on strike against the studios and streamers. We do have answers about this year’s Emmy race. HBO’s “Succession” and “The Last of Us” led the nominations field, as was expected. But there were some fun surprises, such as Freevee’s “Jury Duty” breaking in for comedy series and Disney+’s “Andor” representing the Lucasfilm gang in drama series. But it’s unclear if the Emmy Awards will stick with the plan to broadcast the ceremony live on Fox on Sept. 18. If SAG-AFTRA is on strike by the time you read this, actors won’t appear on the kudocast, which means that the Emmys…

For her cover story, TV business writer Jennifer Maas asked experts to predict the long-term consequences of the WGA strike. Their answers aren’t going to make media companies happy. Senior TV writer Joe Otterson spoke with industry sources to forecast how the writers strike will affect the future of scripted programming. Sadly, none of the sources predicted a revival of “The Tick” starring Patrick Warburton. London-based illustrator Andrew Rae says of this week’s cover, “I had an idea about dominoes and it all came together very naturally. The better ones often work like that.” Brian Stauffer, who illustrated our “Bare Market” feature, says, “I enjoyed the process of coming up with an image for the strike. It’s much too easy for bean counters to minimize any individual portion of the…

It’s good to be HBO — er, “HBO Max” — er, “HBO/Max.” How big was the pay cabler-slash-streamer when it comes to this year’s Emmy nominations? In the supporting actor in a drama category, the outlet held all eight slots (on the backs of just two programs: “Succession” and “The White Lotus”), and in supporting actress, it was six of eight. In a nominations announcement filled with surprises, one was absolutely a given: “Succession” would dominate, and, Roy, did it ever: The outgoing HBO drama scored 27 nominations — including best drama, lead actress (Sarah Snook) and a record three lead actor noms (Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong). Even a good chunk of the show’s supporting cast managed nods, including J. Smith-Cameron, Nicholas Braun, Matthew Macfadyen, Alexander Skarsgård…

DRAMA SERIES “Andor” “Better Call Saul” “The Crown” “House of the Dragon” “The Last of Us” “Succession” “The White Lotus” “Yellowjackets” COMEDY SERIES “Abbott Elementary” “Barry” “The Bear” “Jury Duty” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” “Only Murders in the Building” “Ted Lasso” “Wednesday” LIMITED SERIES “Beef” “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” “Daisy Jones & the Six” “Fleishman Is in Trouble” “Obi-Wan Kenobi” REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM “The Amazing Race” “RuPaul’s Drag Race” “Survivor” “Top Chef” “The Voice” LEAD DRAMA ACTOR Jeff Bridges (“The Old Man”) Brian Cox (“Succession”) Kieran Culkin (“Succession”) Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”) Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”) Jeremy Strong (“Succession”) LEAD DRAMA ACTRESS Sharon Horgan (“Bad Sisters”) Melanie Lynskey (“Yellowjackets”) Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) Bella Ramsey (“The Last of Us”) Keri Russell (“The Diplomat”) Sarah…

Sun Valley, a sleepy ski resort nestled between Idaho’s mountain peaks, is about to see an invasion of Gulfstreams ferrying an embattled species of mogul. These media and tech CEOs are facing threats on several fronts — from labor strikes to plunging share prices to a possible recession. So they’re likely in need of some R&R when they hit Allen & Co.’s annual conference July 12. The cloistered event is an off-the-record affair, with reporters cordoned off from the captains of industry. But it remains closely watched, having been the setting for major mergers and acquisitions over the years, from Comcast’s purchase of NBCUniversal to Disney’s deal for ABC. Here’s what’s on the minds of the C-suite set as they embark on their high-altitude retreat. • Succession Drama Bob Iger…

It’s 10 a.m. in Sydney, where Hayley Atwell is preparing to walk the red carpet as the “Mission: Impossible” crew’s newest member, joining producer and star Tom Cruise and writer-director Christopher McQuarrie’s ensemble of battle-hardened actors. “This is a pure cinematic experience. It’s unadulterated entertainment, and of a huge scale,” Atwell says to Variety about the film, which finally hit theaters on July 12 following a twoy-ear delay caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Flashy events like the Australia premiere mark the end of a four-year odyssey that pushed Atwell’s limits physically — leaving her hanging inside a train car that’s gone from horizontal to vertical, gripping anything nailed to the floor/wall/ceiling lest she fall to her death (or at least the safety rigging below) — and saw her creating a…